Adam Williams presents his prediction for the Friendly International rugby match.
The last time Scotland faced a team from Oceania was at the 2023 Rugby World Cup, but then it was against Tonga, the weakest of the three island teams regularly competing on the world stage. Fiji, on the other hand, pose a significantly greater threat.
Fiji
Fiji for the first time since the 2007 World Cup advanced from the group stage and made quite a stir in the playoffs. In their group, they nearly defeated Wales but made headlines by stunning Australia, and a win over Georgia was enough to progress, despite a narrow loss to Portugal. In the quarterfinals, they put up a tough fight but were edged out by England (24:30). After this achievement, just recently in September, the team under Michael Byrne's leadership claimed their sixth Pacific Nations Cup.
Scotland
The Scots also faced competitors from this Cup. Over the summer, they went on a tour of the Americas, comfortably defeating Canada, the USA, and Chile, with the exception of a loss to Uruguay (19:31), which had shown resilience in the previous World Cup. Their last true test is the annual Six Nations Championship. Year after year, they've been improving their results and yet remain fourth in Europe. Scotland defeated England at home (30:21), but a crucial away loss to Italy (29:31) proved costly.
Fiji vs Scotland Prediction
In summary, both teams pose significant threats, and this match won’t be easy for either side. However, Scotland are expected to have the upper hand. In the last seven years, they have faced each other four times: three victories for the hosts at Murrayfield in Edinburgh (54:17, 28:12, 28:0), while Fiji managed a win in Suva on their home turf (27:22). The Scotland team will win by at least a 20-point margin.
